


should this be the last thing i see? (i want you to know it's enough for me)

by diamond0604



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Professors, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Family Fluff, Fatherhood, Fluff, Husbands, Kid Fic, M/M, Married Couple, Married Life, Modern Era, Nothing Hurts, Secret Relationship, So Married
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 14:27:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18918865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/diamond0604/pseuds/diamond0604
Summary: “Goodnight,” Phil whispered as he kissed Penny’s cheek himself.“Goodnight Papa,” Penny replied, “I love you.”Phil’s heart stuttered then. He’d be happy for this to be the last sight he’d ever see, the sight of his husband and child side by side in pyjamas, Penny with just brushed hair and face full of innocence and affection.“We love you too Bubba,” Dan whispered as he stroked Penny’s cheekalso known as the domestic life and linguistic professor phil theater professor dan and their child





	should this be the last thing i see? (i want you to know it's enough for me)

**Author's Note:**

> this fic is dedicated to my lovely friend olivia for her birthday!  
> she tweeted this [this](https://mobile.twitter.com/crzyfast/status/1064291177401331712) a little while ago about dnp being college professors and we spend a lot of time discussing dnp as parents so i decided to combine them together into one fic!! i really hope you guys enjoy the read. 
> 
> you can find olivia's twitter account [here](https://mobile.twitter.com/crzyfast)  
> you can also find me on [twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/aImondbIossoms) and [tumblr](https://persephonespeonies.tumblr.com)  
> this fic was also beta'd by my lovely bestie tj and you can find her on [twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/frecklyIance), [tumblr ](https://nerdydisneychild.tumblr.com/) and [ao3](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tjmcharg/pseuds/tjmcharg)

He doesn’t wake to the blaring of an alarm going off like he was expecting too, no he wakes to the soft chirps of birds outside their apartment and the sun streaming in through the window panes of their bedroom. Phil let out a soft sigh as he stretched his body as best as he could when his husband was still in his arms. His vision bleary he reached for his phone and squinted to look at the bright screen glaring back at him.

_6:40_

Phil figured there was no point going back to sleep now, they all had to be up and out of the comfort of their bed soon anyway so instead he reached for his glasses. Once the black frames were on his face he moved his gaze to his husband. Even after years of marriage he still felt a swoop of euphoria every time he saw Dan. Dan with his soft brown curls that Phil loved to run his hands through when they were tangled together on the couch. Dan with the delicate freckles that speckled his face that Phil pressed kisses to whenever he got the chance. Dan with the soft dimples that sat close to his lips the ones Phil loved to press his thumbs into when he held Dan’s warm face in his hands. Dan with the soft pink lips that whispered ‘I love you’ to him all those years ago and the same ones that Phil never let go unnoticed since.

Phil shifted pulling Dan tighter to him and began to scroll through his phone as he waited for either Dan to wake up or for their alarm to go off - whichever came first. It wasn’t too long until Phil felt Dan shift in his arms.

“Mmmph what time is it?” Dan mumbled as he burrowed deeper into Phil’s arms.  
“Almost time to get up.” Phil pressed a kiss into Dan’s soft curls and smiled as Dan reciprocated by placing a kiss of his own onto Phil’s collarbone.

“Do we have to?” Dan pulled his arm out of the covers to reach for his phone and Phil saw the goosebumps that dotted his arms so he pulled his husband deeper into his chest to keep him warm. The couple laid there in silence for a little while scrolling quietly through their phones, enjoying each other's embrace and the quiet of the morning. Phil smiled when soft _pitter patters_ of a child’s feet making its way down the hall. They both craned their necks to see their little four year old daughter standing their with bed head and Mickey Mouse patterned pyjamas. They both smiled and shifted to make way for her as Penny struggled to wriggle her way onto their bed.

“I wanted to cuddle,” She grinned as she wedged herself between her fathers, instantly curling around Dan.  
“Yeah you and me Bubba,” Dan whispered as he pecked a kiss on his daughter's cheek and smiled as she giggled. Phil curled around her too peppering kisses across the back of her head and enjoyed the domestic bliss of his little family.

Phil was running his hands through Penny’s hair, gently working out the knots when his alarm went off, its’ harsh noise breaking their little bubble.

“Come on time to get up.” Phil patted Dan on the hip as he pulled himself up to sit on their bed and smiled fondly as his husband grumbled and asked for five more minutes while his daughter copied him. Leaving the warmth of their covers Phil leaned over to press a soft kiss to Dan’s forehead and ruffled Penny’s hair before made his way into their bathroom.

Once Phil was under the spray of the hot water the remnants of sleep wash away from his body, he saw the bathroom door open and smiled as he saw Dan bumble in.  
“Hey you,” Dan whispered before he caught Phil’s lips in a kiss under the mist of the showerhead. Phil grinned as Dan pulled them closer together and let himself be enveloped in steam as he kissed his husband.  
“Penny okay?” Phil asked as rubbed body wash along his arms.  
“Yeah turned on the TV, should keep her out of trouble for a little while.”  
“She’s not allowed TV in the morning,” Phil reprimanded as he rubbed his face under the water.  
“Don’t worry I told her it was only for today.”  
Phil shook his head in exasperation unable to keep the fond smile off his face.

“Which shirt?” Dan asked holding both up for Phil to see as he was buttoning up his own.  
“They’re both black Dan,” Phil pointed out as he fiddled with the final button on his shirt.  
“But which one?” Dan pouted.  
Phil grinned and pressed a soft kiss to Dan’s lips, relishing in the way Dan melted into him. After so many years in each others company the novelty of being so close to each other had never changed. The idea of being late was still stuck in the back of his mind so he reluctantly pulled away and opened his eyes to be greeted with sight of Dan with his deep brown eyes .  
“That one.” Phil pointed at the black shirt with the white roses embroidered along the collar and cuffs.  
“Yeah the one with the pretty flowers!”

They both turned to see their daughter in the doorway once again, a bright smile on her face.

“Oh you like the flowers?” Dan asked with an eyebrow raised; in response Penny nodded eagerly and giggled as Dan ran to scoop her up into his arms. Phil watched as Dan held her by the armpits in front of him.  
“Well let’s find you something with flowers to wear too huh?”  
“Yeah!”

Once dressed they made their way into the kitchen navigating their way perfectly around each other, after years of living together they had created the perfect morning routine. Dan would make their morning drinks and Phil would prepare two bowls of cereal and Dan would tease his husband when he caught him sneaking some cereal dry out of the box all while their daughter would sit at the kitchen bench swinging her legs babbling away.

“I had a really weird dream last night,” Phil said once they were all eating away at their cereal.  
“Oh?” Dan raised his brows as he took a sip out of his mug.  
“Had a dream that Thor was a student in my class and when he put his hand up to ask a question his hammer came crashing through the ceiling.”  
“You’ve been dreaming about Thor?” Dan asked faking hurt on his face, “with all those abs and arms? Should I be worried?”  
“Shut up,” Phil laughed as he ate another spoonful of cereal.  
“Thor is friends with Hulk! Hulk Smash!” Penny cried almost tipping her plastic cereal bowl over, Dan reached over to steady it before cleaning up the milk that was dripping on Penny’s chin.

As they were getting ready to leave Penny excitedly told Phil that she was hoping to do finger painting at daycare while he pulled on her shoes and he told her that he was looking forward to see her painting.  They left their apartment, chatting idly while Penny held both of their hands as they made their way to the Underground to go to drop Penny off at daycare. They stuck together as they were swallowed by the mass of the morning rush; in the crowded train carriage packed together like sardines. Phil wrapped an arm around his husband while he hitched Penny up to his hip and she wrapped her arms and legs around her dad’s torso and held him tight and warm until they arrived.

They got off at their stop and Dan carried Penny all the way to daycare where she wriggled out of his grip, eager to go and play.  
“Bye bye Daddy!” She toddled over to Dan and kissed his cheek, “bye bye Papa!”  
She planted a clumsy kiss on his cheek as well.  
“Bye bye Bubba,” Dan said as he went to blow a raspberry on her cheek making her giggle.  
“See you soon okay?” Phil said as they were on the way out, “we love you very much.”  
“I love you too!” Penny smiled as she frantically waved to her parents as they left.

Then it was just the pair of them, Dan and Phil, Phil and Dan making their way back to the Underground station. They were lucky enough to find two seats next to each other on the tube and they spent it with their legs tangled together and thighs pressed together.

The outside air was cold and crisp as they walked their way to the University campus so Phil bustled up closer to Dan, knowing that he wouldn’t have any qualms about it. They turned the corner and saw the big buildings of campus approaching them. They reached one of the gates, the gate closest to the Performing Arts building and where they would have to branch off. Dan pulled Phil into an impromptu kiss and only deepened it as Phil yelped.

“Someone could see us!” Phil whispered as he pushed Dan away.  
“Come on, no one’s around,” Dan pointed out before he pulled Phil closer to him once again, “and who’s to stop me letting me husband kiss me goodbye?”  
Dan leaned forward to capture Phil’s lips in his once again and Phil conceded for just a moment before pulling away.  
“You’re gonna be late,” Phil stated as he played with one of Dan’s loose curls. Dan pouted but Phil reassured him that he’d see him soon and waved his husband goodbye and laughed as Dan dramatically blew him a kiss and bowed before he turned the corner.

Phil opened the door to his office and was greeted with the familiar sight of dark wood furniture, the lamps installed into the walls and always made Dan jealous. His office in the Performing Arts department was newer, more modern and he always wanted the antique lamp in the wall aesthetic for himself. Phil settled in his desk chair opened his desk drawer and pulled a photo frame from it to place on his desk. Inside there was a framed photo of him, Dan and Penny when they went to Disneyland for their summer holiday the year before. Dan wore a Winnie the Pooh shirt, while Phil wore a Baymax shirt and Penny was dressed up in Anna’s Coronation Gown; all their outfits were complete with matching Mickey Mouse ears.

Phil spent his morning replying to emails sent by frantic students at ungodly hours of the night pleading for advice on papers and projects when he saw his phone light up.

**Instagram**

**@danielhowell has tagged you in a post**

 

He immediately reached for his phone and shot a text to Dan.

 

**You**

**Don’t you have a class right now?**

 

**Dan <3**

**yeah but they’re watching a video rn and im bored**

 

**You**

**Oh my god do your job**

 

**Dan <3**

**what if tagging you in cute corgi pictures is more fun**

 

**You**

**> :(**

 

**Dan <3**

**fine**

 

**Dan <3**

**love you**

 

**You**

**…**

 

**Dan <3**

**hey!**

 

**You**

**Love you too :)**

 

Once his inbox was clear Phil packed up his bag and began making his way to a lecture hall ready to teach some sleep deprived students about childhood language acquisition. Once the class had concluded as he bid the students good bye he could feel his phone buzz in his back pocket. Packing up his laptop with one hand and fumbling with his phone in the other Phil opened a text.

 

**Dan <3**

**i’ve left my lunch at home, come to starbucks to get something with me?**

 

**You**

**You can just have some of mine, we can share**

 

**Dan <3**

**that was me asking you to come on a lunch date with me**

 

**You**

**What if I’m busy**

 

**Dan <3**

**then i guess i’ll go on the long journey to get lunch on my own :(**

 

**You**

**Fine you dork I’ll come to lunch with you**

 

**Dan <3**

**meet me there?**

 

**You**

**Okay :)**

 

When time for lunch came round Phil locked his office and began making is way to Starbucks on his own. They never really went anywhere on campus together, they were too scared that it would start rumours about their relationship. When they first started seeing each other only Phil had a position on campus but when Dan got a position on campus himself they both resolved to keep it secret - to avoid rumours that Dan had slept his way get the job - and even though they had gotten married since then, had a _child_ since then they’d always kept their relationship a secret at work.

Phil spotted Dan in the line so he busied himself with finding a table in the corner of the store, Dan preferred to sit in the window and Penny did too but by sitting tucked away in the corner they would be less likely to be spotted by a student or another faculty member. While Dan was ordering them food Phil entertained himself by scrolled through his Instagram. He was about to like a post of corgis dressed up in costumes when Dan arrived to the table with two caramel macchiatos and some pastries in hand.

“I was thinking of taking Penny to the park this weekend,” Dan said as he sipped his drink.  
“Oh?” Phil said accidently spluttering crumbs into the air and down the front of his shirt. Dan laughed fondly and leaned over to brush off the crumbs before he continued,  
“The weather’s getting nicer, I think it’ll be fun...”  
Phil’s stomach stirred a little as he watched Dan get that fond look on his face when he talked about Penny, he dipped his head down a little and his corners of his lips twitched up. Phil was filled up with a sense of content because he had everything he’d ever wanted.  
“Of course we’ll go to the park this weekend,” Phil smiled as he tangled his foot with Dan’s under the table.  
Dan was telling Phil about the class he just had and Phil struggled to hold his giggles when he found out that one of Dan’s students had tumbled down the stairs, end over end. In Dan’s words it was “like one of those fucking cartoons that Penny loves to watch.”

Phil had an elbow on the table, leaning over to show Dan something on his phone when his eyes drifted from Dan’s face to over his shoulder. He sharply retreated back into his seat and felt an uncomfortable flush fill his face.

  
“I think there are some students behind you,” Phil breathed quietly as he dipped his chin hoping that no one could see his face. Dan’s eyebrows shot up and he whipped his head around and when he turned his head back to face his husband he began to nibble on his bottom lip.  
“You go to the bathroom,” Dan began as he began stacking up their plates, “and I’ll leave. I’ll text you when the coast is clear.”  
Phil nodded and prayed that he didn’t trip over his own feet as he slipped out of his seat and made his way to the bathroom, quickly locking himself in a stall.

He nervously scrolled through his Instagram, not really seeing the myriad of posts displayed on his phone, his stomach twisted with apprehension. He turned on his phone hoping to catch a glimpse of the time and a wave of consolation washed over him at the sight of his lockscreen. It was a selfie he had taken one evening when Penny had climbed into his bed insisting that they read her stories. It perfectly captured Dan’s dimples when he smiled, Penny’s curls and the pure affection Phil had for his little family. He stared at the photo, unaware of the numbers changing on the clock when a notification appeared on his screen.

**Dan <3**

**coast is clear now, see you on campus <3**

 

Phil unlocked the stall and made his way back to campus, alone but head and heart filled with the thoughts of his family.

 

~~~~

 

The rest of the week went by without a hitch and before Phil knew it Saturday had arrived and watched as Penny’s face lit up when they floated the idea of going to the park together. She excitedly devoured the rest of her toast and Phil laughed as she spread jam across her chin and cheeks before using a napkin to wipe it off her face. Once she was out of her chair she immediately beelined for her bedroom before Phil called her back to help with the dishes.

Helping with the dishes mostly consisted of Penny sitting on the kitchen bench pointing out spots that Phil had missed but it was helping all the same. Once their kitchen was clean Penny took both of her dads in hand and led them to her bedroom where she politely asked if she could wear her yellow shirt with the daisies printed all over. Phil watched as his husband attempted to pull the shirt over Penny’s head and tried to suppress his laughter as he struggled due to Penny’s excited wriggles.

Once she was dressed she took Dan’s hand (took his index finger more like) and pulled him over to her bed; she wriggled herself so that she was sitting comfortably on the sheets.  
“Can you do my hair pretty Daddy? Please?” She asked with big wide blue eyes and both Dan and Phil knew that they could never say no to that face. Phil left Penny’s room to fill Dan’s backpack with snacks and a rug so that Penny didn’t have to sit on the bare ground and promptly returned to the bathroom where Dan was busy with the task of french braiding Penny’s hair.

He couldn’t help it, the sunlight was streaming in from Penny’s bedroom window and both Dan and Penny looked so content that he quickly took a photo, capturing the moment forever. Once Dan had tied off Penny’s braids she leaped off the bed and bounded across to Phil.  
“Papa! Did Daddy do my hair all pretty?”  
“Yeah he did! You look like a princess!”  
Penny giggled in glee at that and put Phil led her out to the hall to put on her shoes.

Once they were out of the apartment they all bumbled into the elevator together and once they were out on the pavement Penny took Phil’s hand in one hand and Dan’s in the other. Phil moved his gaze up to look at Dan, eyes softening with fondness at the sight of him so at ease ,Penny breaking the silent exchange with a demand to have a go on the swing. They made their way to the park, perhaps more slowly than the average person but Phil was okay with that considering he was lifting his daughter up into the air with every third step and got to hear her symphony of laughter along the way.

They arrived at the park and Penny immediately pointed at the playground, eagerly asking if she could have a go. They held her by the waist, lifting her up so that she could reach the monkey bars and swing to her heart’s content and they both filmed her as she slid down the slide and ran up the steps to do it again. On what must’ve been the tenth time down the slide did she notice some people picking flowers. She walked over to her dad’s and pointed to them, “can we pick flowers?”

“Course we can!” Dan replied as he offered a hand for her to take. They all walked over to the patch of flowers (skipped in Penny’s case) and when they arrived there she picked a flower delicately. It was a bright yellow dandelion and she twirled it between her fingers for a moment before she turned to her dad’s.  
“Can we make flower crowns?” She asked as she rose up to her tiptoes to give the flower to Dan.  
“Can you teach us?” Phil asked as he pulled out the rug in their bag and laid it flat.  
Penny nodded enthusiastically as she spun a story about how one of her friends at daycare taught her how to make flower crowns. Phil kept tearing the flower stems and dutifully listened as his four year old lectured him about how he had to be careful, feeling that sense of contentment settle in his body again.

They walked home that afternoon with flower crowns, Dan with bright yellow dandelions atop his head - Penny commented that “You look pretty in yellow Daddy!” -, Phil had blue wild flowers -”to match your shoes Papa” - and Penny carefully inspected each flower bed to pick only the best daisies for her own flower crown to match her shirt. Penny started flagging in energy once they were on the tube, she was squeezing the front of Phil’s shirt - a non verbal plea to be picked up - so he gripped her around the waist and held her close to his chest. He saw Dan smile at the pair of them and he smiled back as Penny wrapped her arms around his neck. It was late afternoon once they were out of the station and making the walk back home but Penny was fast asleep, breaths soft and arms still wound around Phil’s neck.

“I have some marking to do, can you keep her busy for a little while?” Phil asked as he narrowly avoided running into a pole  
“Careful there mister, you’re holding our child,” Dan teased with a wide smile on his face, “sometimes I wonder how we haven’t broken a bone raising her yet.”  
“Hey!” Phil cried pretending to be offended, “you’re the one who almost fell _up_ the stairs with all those toys you bought for her on her first birthday!”  
“It was her first birthday Phil! She deserved it!”  
Phil only laughed fondly at his husband and how ridiculous his spending habits were sometimes.  
“Yeah I’ll take care of her,” Dan confirmed as they arrived at their apartment block.

Eventually they made it up to their apartment and once they had pried off their shoes they turned to gently wake up Penny. They tapped her lightly to see if she would wake up and whispered her name softly. Slowly she blinked herself awake and mumbled something into Phil’s neck.  
“Hey Bub,” Dan said gently as he stroked Penny’s cheek with the back of his hand, “wanna watch a cartoon with Daddy?”  
She mumbled what Phil thought was a yes in response and unfurled her arms from Phil’s neck and reached out for Dan so Phil dutifully passed her over to him. He said goodbye by giving a quick peck on his husband’s lips before leaving them alone in the lounge room. Even once he had shut the door to their office he heard Dan tickling Penny and her giggling uncontrollably.

He didn’t know how much time he spent in the office, blearily reading paper after paper after paper. He could feel the beginnings of a headache forming in his temples and he knew he would have to swap out his contacts for glasses soon. There was a little knock on the door and Phil turned to see Penny standing there.  
“Hey Pen-Pen,” he greeted wearily as she waddled her way to Phil’s desk, she put her arms up so Phil lifted her up into his lap.  
“Daddy said that your working too much,” Penny frowned, her little eyebrows furrowing.  
Phil hummed, “maybe a little bit,” he admitted.  
“Come play with us?” She asked quietly with big wide eyes. Phil only needed to look at her once until he found himself nodding and walking her into the lounge room.

A deep wave of affection washed over him when he walked in. Dan and Penny had made a blanket fort and Dan had ordered pizzas for the three of them and there was a pile of Penny’s favourite story books piled up next to the array of food.  
“Did you do all this?” Phil asked Penny breathlessly.  
“Yeah me and Daddy.” She nodded enthusiastically as he pulled Phil by the hand and pushed him to sit in a pile of pillows.    
“Read story?” She held up a picture book to Phil’s face and Phil couldn’t bring himself to say no. They all spent the entire night cuddled up in their blanket fort, eating warm pizza while Penny giggled at the voices her dads put on when they read her stories.

 

~~~~

 

Phil had just sent a student on their way after answering some questions about a paper they had to hand in when there was another knock on his door. He hummed a response, eyes not leaving his laptop screen.  
“When your husband finds his laptop screen more interesting than you.”  
Phil flicked his eyes up to see Dan with a small pout on his face which eventually grew into a smile.

“What can I do for you Professor Howell?” Phil asked turning on his teacher voice.  
“Ugh don’t do that,” Dan breathed as he sat onto Phil’s desk, “I just wanted to see you.”  
“What couldn’t you wait a couple of hours?” Phil teased with this tongue between his teeth.  
“No I really couldn’t,” Dan whispered leaning ever so slightly closer to Phil. Phil’s heart began to thud as he stared into the depth of Dan’s eyes,  
“Dan th-the-these are my office hour - mmph!”  
Phil was promptly cut of by Dan crashing their lips together and for a moment he lost himself in the feeling of Dan’s lips moving softly against his before he pushed Dan away.  
“Someone could walk in!” Phil cried as he stood up and made his way towards the door.

“You should go before we get caught.” Phil began turning the doorknob but faltered when he felt the warmth Dan’s hand when it met his. He turned to face Dan again who had a mischievous glint in his eyes. Phil struggled to take in a breath as he felt Dan’s hand move from the doorknob, felt his heart thud as he heard Dan turn the lock of the door with a _click._ Phil’s heart stuttered as Dan breathed softly over his ear, “no one can catch us now.”

They lost themselves, time dissolved into thick honey and all they knew was each other, with hands in hair and lips moving and melding together and a blissful peace that was so hard to find. It made Phil’s heart soar and he wanted to bottle up the moment and keep it safely tucked away forever. They broke the kiss and pressed their foreheads together, simply breathing together when there was a knock on the door.

They both jumped at the sound, Phil’s eyes scanned the room, trying to find a place for Dan to hide while his husband mumbled “shit, shit, fuck, shit _shit_ ” in the background. Phil grabbed Dan by the wrist and dragged him to his desk.

“Quick! Under the table!” Phil urged but when Dan pouted Phil rolled his eyes and shoved him under there anyway. As he slowly made the way back to the door, he straightened his tie and fixed his hair hoping that he didn’t look too flustered. He unlocked the door and was greeted by a Caitlin, a student in one of his Etymology classes.

She sat across from his desk while they discussed and upcoming essay and Phil couldn’t stop thinking about his husband who was curled up underneath, tucked away under the wood. Eventually she stood up and thanked him as she left, closing the door behind her and Phil let out a sigh of relief. He rolled back his chair to look at Dan who had curled up into a ball under the desk.

“This is why you don’t just surprise visit me during _office hours.”_ Phil scolded playfully.  
“Fine, fine fine,” Dan pouted as he pulled himself out, Phil was about to bid him goodbye when Dan pressed another soft kiss to his lips.  
“See you soon,” Dan smiled before he saw himself out, leaving Phil breathless in his office chair.

 

~~~~

 

Phil had just locked up his office and was making his way across the grounds when he saw Dan standing near one of the big iron wrought gates of the campus. Hel flicked his eyes from side to side; making sure there was no one around before he crept up behind Dan.

“Boo!”

“Fuck!”

Dan jumped and Phil laughed as he dropped his phone just saving it by holding onto the string of his earphones.  
“I hate you,” Dan pouted and Phil cupped Dan’s face with his hand and stroked his cheek.  
“Aww I love you too,” Phil cooed as he leaned forward to press a chaste kiss to Dan’s lips.  
When they broke apart they spent a moment just staring into each other’s eyes enjoying the feeling of breathing together, being together simply _existing_ together.  
“We should go pick up Penny,” Dan breathed as a breeze blew across both of them. Phil nodded and slipped his hand into Dan’s pocket intertwining their fingers together as they began to walk to the station.

They spent the short trip on the tube pressed together as Phil pressed his head against Dan’s while he waited for their stop to be called. They chatted idly as they walked to Penny’s daycare and when they opened the door the first thing they saw was Penny thundering towards them.  
“Daddy! Papa!” She cheered as she put her arms up. Phil bent over to pick her up and settled her onto his hip while Dan tickled her tummy. The trio wandered back to the play room of the daycare where Dan drifted over to talk to one of the staff to ask them if anything had happened to Penny while Phil picked up Penny’s cloud patterned backpack.

Once they had all arrived home Penny asked if they could have pizza for dinner and both Dan and Phil were both too tired to argue and to cook so they said yes. Dan busied himself by placing the pizza order while Phil played with Penny and her toys on the lounge room floor.  
They were about to send the wicked witch into the forest castle when Penny shot up to her feet.

“I forgot something!” She cried as she ran to her backpack Phil calling for her not to run. He leaned his back on the couch while he waited for Penny to bumble back into the lounge. Dan joined too, settling next to him pressing a soft kiss to his shoulder.  
“Hey you,” Dan smiled as he cuddled closer to Phil. Phil whispered a soft “hey” back and pressed a quick kiss to Dan’s lips. They broke the kiss at the sound of Penny’s soft feet thundering into the lounge. In her hand was a slightly crumpled piece of paper which she passed over to her parents.

“Ella invited me to her birthday party! Can I go please?” Penny asked with a bright smile as he prodded at the paper. Dan and Phil both moved their gazes to the invitation and quickly skimmed over the words.

 

_Dear: Penny_

_You are invited to Ella’s 4th Birthday Party!_

_It will be at the Jumping Jungle Gym on the 3rd of May!_

 

The rest of the invitation contained a RSPV and other details; when Dan and Phil moved their gaze back up to look at Penny she had a hopeful look on her face.  
“Yeah I think you can go,” Dan shrugged and Penny immediately cheered and jumped into his arms. Penny babbled about how excited she was, about how she wanted Ella’s present to be a lego set because they played lego’s together all the time at daycare.

They were interrupted by the arrival of their pizza and soon they were all cuddled on the couch munching while watching Tangled. The night went by peacefully the only sense of havoc was when Penny got a little too enthusiastic with the bath bubbles. But soon they were both tucking their daughter into bed and kissing her goodnight.

 

~~~~

 

Phil had just finished doing up his tie when he heard a knock at the door and the sound of Penny thundering down the hallway while Dan reprimanded that one does not run inside. He poked his head out of the bathroom to see Penny being lifted into Cornelia’s arms while she told her “Aunty Corny” about everything she had missed.

Phil dipped back into the bathroom to make sure everything was in order, making sure there wasn’t a stray hair in his quiff or a stain on his white shirt before he left the bathroom. He gave Dan a peck on his shoulder before straightening his tie; ignoring how Cornelia and Martyn teased them. Everyone spent a couple minutes in the hallway chatting before they all migrated into the lounge. The clock ticked closer and closer to 6:30 and it came time for Dan and Phil to leave. Dan told Cornelia and Martyn about when to give Penny dinner, what time she had to be in bed and that she still needed help brushing her teeth while Phil sank down to his knees to be at eye level with Penny.

“You be good for Uncle Marty and Aunty Corny when me and Daddy are away yeah?”  
“Yeah!” Penny jumped, “I’ll be good I promise!” She ran to Phil to give him a hug but ended up knocking him over until she was splayed across his torso while he was on the floor, eyes staring up at the ceiling. A little bit breathless he pulled himself back up into a sitting position to see Penny with a face of pure worry on her face.  
“Are you okay Papa?” Penny asked as he patted Phil’s face with her small hands. Phil laughed as he took her hands in hers and give them a soft kiss,  
“I’m fine Pen Pen.” Phil leaned in to give Penny a kiss on the cheek. “But me and Daddy have to leave now”  
Penny immediately made her way over to Dan and wrapped her arms around his legs,  
“Bye bye Daddy,” she mumbled into Dan’s dress pants giggling, as Dan lifted her up by the armpits to plant a kiss onto her cheek.  
“Bye bye Bub,” Dan smiled as he put Penny down.

They both bid farewell to Cornelia and Martyn before they were making their way back to campus for a fundraising event for the science department. They had really considered not going considering than neither of them had any sort of close association to the science department but eventually both came to the conclusion that they should at least show their faces.

When they walked some students from the music department were in the corner playing some sort of string piece and the space was bustling with others. If this was any other type of party they would be glued together at the hip, one would never see Phil without Dan closely following but this particular scenario was different. They weren’t husbands, weren’t lovers for years they were colleagues, co workers. Even though they weren’t even touching Phil could feel Dan tense up next to him.

“I’ll text you but I think we should split up,” Phil said under his breath as they both moved away from the doorway. Dan clenched his jaw and nodded before he strided over to a group of professors from the performing arts department.

For the next hour Phil floated from colleague to colleague and attempted to smile through boring conversations until the moment he could slip away. He sipped slowly at the complimentary champagne provided making sure not to drink too much, he didn’t want any secrets about Dan slipping out to a Dean or some professor from the Economics department. He was sitting at the bar with a half empty glass in his hand chatting to Laurel who was a creative writing professor. He had made conversation with her before, them being from the same department and all, but he never knew much about her. He found out that she was in the middle of writing her own book that her brother had just moved to the United States and that she had a pile of papers to mark.

“Hey Phil I couldn’t help but notice that you have an array of stickers on your laptop,” she said as she took a sip of her drink.  
“Oh yeah, erm I think stickers make everything better,” Phil replied, wary of where the conversation might be headed.  
“And you have a NASA one right?”  
“Yes…” Phil confirmed hesitantly. He heard someone clear their throat behind him and he looked out the corner of his eye to see Dan sitting there ordering something. He saw the bartender slide a glass of something over the bar before he turned his attention to what Laurel was saying.  
“It’s just that I’ve got a friend who loves space too and I think-”

Laurel abruptly stopped to look over Phil shoulder, he followed her gaze to see Dan choking on his drink. Phil froze up - should he help Dan? Or would that be to suspicious looking? Was he okay? What had happened? His train of thought came to a stop as Dan recovered and smiled at him.

“Sorry,” Dan winced as he massaged his throat, “just wasn’t expecting the drink to taste like that.”  
Phil furrowed his brow, he’d known Dan for so long that he knew when Dan was lying and he knew in that moment that Dan was _lying_.

“Oh we’ve all been there,” Laurel reassured as she took a sip of her own drink, “come join us? We were just chatting while we were waiting for the speeches. I was just going to tell Phil about a friend of mine. She loves space,” Laurel continued as she turned to look at Phil, “loves it. Loves NASA, poor darling was devastated when that Mars rover died. But I think you two would get on well! And she loves dogs too! Never stops going on about them but I think she likes every dog to exist. Her favourites are corgis though, she’s always tagging me in those cute corgi videos. And you two would look great together, she’s a little shorter than you but she has this lovely dark blonde hair and... ”

It was like someone had poured ice cold water over his body. Oh, oh, _oh,_ Laurel was hoping to set him up with somebody Phil realised. How were they going to deal with this? He couldn’t tell Laurel that he wasn’t available, that he would probably never be available, that he had a child and a loving husband at home. When his thoughts started to concern his loving husband Phil peeked a glance at Dan. He was clenching his jaw and his brows were furrowed leaving wrinkle in his forehead and Phil worried that he might break the glass if he clutched it any tighter. Laurel was still rambling on about her friend and Phil struggled to find an opening to inform her that there was no chance of a prospective date on the horizon.

Laurel mentioned some restaurant that she thought might be a good place for Phil and her friend Alison to get food when Dan cut her off.  
“Oh I’ve been there, the desserts there are really good.”  
“Oh? I think the pasta there is to die for,” Laurel drawled, “but Phil I do think you would love it Alison-”  
“I wasn’t the biggest fan of the pasta, the sauces weren’t that great I’ve had better.”  
“But the subtly of -”  
“The entrees were a bit bland to, I don’t think it’s as good as its reputation.” Dan wrinkled his nose. Laurel opened her mouth to reply but then someone announced that speeches would be happening. The three of them began to shuffle to the centre of the space where there was a man standing there with a microphone.

“I’m sorry Laurel but I’m not sure me seeing Alison would be the best thing right now. I’ve got a lot on my plate right now.” Phil noticed that as soon as the words had left his mouth Dan’s shoulders sank and he tried to hold in a smile at the sight.  
“Oh well,” Laurel sighed admitting defeat, “another time maybe?”  
_Definitely not_ Phil thought to himself but he braved a smile and nodded timidly before turning his attention to the speech givers.

 

~~~~

 

“No Papa I wanna wear my elephant one!” Penny insisted as Phil held two different outfits in his arms. Phil chuckled as he bent down to his knees to pull the shirt over Penny’s head.  
“You’re just like your Daddy you know?” Phil chuckled as he pulled socks over Penny’s small feet.  
“Huh?”  
“Your daddy is a bit of a bossy boots about his clothes too,” Phil smiled as he helped Penny slide off her bed. The second Penny’s feet hit the floor she darted out of the room crying “Daddy!!” she dragged the last syllable as her socked feet scampered down the hallway,  
“Papa called you a bossy boots!”  
“He what?”  
Phil sighed and rubbed his face in resignation before he hauled himself to his feet to meet his husband in the lounge.

  
“Just said that your a bit picky with your clothes that’s all!” Phil defended, crossing his arms.  
“How dare you!” Dan gasped, putting his hand over his heart in mock horror.  
“Yeah how dare you!” Penny cried, mimicking the way Dan put his hand on his heart. The sight of it made Phil’s heart spark with comfort and joy and every other warm emotion to exist.  
“C’mon Bub we shouldn’t listen to a man who wears emoji pyjamas,” Dan scorned as he picked Penny up.  
“Papa’s emoji pants are ugly.” Penny wrinkled her nose and Phil dropped his jaw.  
“Go change into something,” Dan smiled and Phil conceded to the two fashion divas that he loved with all his heart.

Once they were all dressed and ready to go they left the apartment, revelling in the sunlit outdoors.They began to make their way to the jungle gym where Penny babble about how excited she was. They opened the jungle gym’s doors to the sound of screaming children and the smell of plastic. Penny waved frantically at a small group in one of the party areas and wriggled out of Dan’s arms to run over and say hi.

“Hey wait up Pen Pen.” Phil caught her at her wrist and tugged her gently back towards him, “we gotta go to the counter first and show them your invitation first.”  
Penny pouted but dutifully followed her parents to the front counter.

As they approached the counter a problem became apparent.

Oh no. Oh no no no no no no _no_.

“Professor Lester?”

  
“Uh…. Hi Grace…” Phil stuttered out as he struggled to think of an excuse.  
“And Professor Howell?”  
Dan awkwardly gave a wave as he too struggled to think of an excuse.  
“And uh… what can I do for you today?”  
“My friend’s having a birthday party!” Penny interrupted as she tried to jump to see over the counter, “can I go in please?”  
“I’ll need to see your invitation,” Grace replied kindly and Phil saw her confused face while Penny tugged on Dan’s sleeve for her invitation.  
Dan slid it across the counter as Grace ticked off Penny’s name off the checklist.  
“Can I go in now?”  
“Yeah go have fun!” Grace smiled as the gate to the playground swung open.  
“C’mon Daddy! C’mon Papa!” Penny grinned as she skipped to the gate while her parents reluctantly followed.

“What are we gonna do?” Dan cried while he ran his hands through his curly brown hair.  
“Hey hey hey it’s gonna be fine,” Phil soothed, taking his husbands hands into his own, stroking his fingers, rubbing Dan’s ring with the pad of his thumb, “I’m sure if we just ask her to keep quiet about it she will.”  
“But what if she doesn’t? What if she tells all her friends? And word gets round and then everyone knows? What are they going to think? What’s gonna happen? What if-”  
“- I can promise you that’s not going to happen.” Phil held Dan’s hands tight and his heart squeezed when he felt them shake slightly in his own. “It’s been so long now that I don’t think anyone’s going to care anymore.”

Before Dan could reply Penny came bounding up the them, strands of hair falling out of the neat braid Dan had weaved before they left.  
“You okay Daddy?” Penny asked with big wide blue eyes framed by curly lashes. Both their hearts melted at that, even when she was bouncing with her friends Penny still wanted to make sure that her dads were okay.  
“Yeah I’m okay Bub,” Dan leaned in to give a kiss on Penny’s cheek, “you go have fun.”

Grace approached them as she was cleaning up the mess in the dining area.  
“You know the rumour is that you’re seeing Professor King.” She looked at Dan as she wiped down the yellow tabletop.  
Dan stuttered out a soft “Oh,” as his cheeks pinkened and he hunched his shoulders a tiny bit. Someone, probably Grace’s supervisor called her over.  
“But don’t worry, I won’t say anything,” Grace said as he pushed a lock of stray hair behind her ear.  
“Your kid’s cute by the way!”

 

~~~~

 

“Done with your teeth?”  
Penny nodded and smiled widely to show off her clean teeth before she toddled into Phil’s arms. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her up.  
“Ready for story time?” Phil asked her as he nuzzled his nose with hers before securing her on his hip.  
“But what about Daddy?” Penny asked with a crinkle in her forehead.  
“Don’t worry Daddy will be there for story time too,” Dan reassured as he walked around a corner and stroked Penny’s hair.

The three of them walked into Penny’s bedroom and set Penny down on the ground; she bumbled over to her bookshelf and made little grunts as she pried some some picture books from the shelf. She returned to the bed and plopped an array of books on the bed before she climbed the bed herself and settled herself underneath the covers with a Winnie the Pooh plush under her arm, the one her  
dads had got her the day she was born.   
Together they both started to read her Peter Rabbit when she stopped them as Dan was reading some dialogue.  
“Do the funny voice Daddy!” She insisted with big wide eyes. Dan smiled fondly before he read on putting on voices for each character and Phil followed suit. A wave of affection washed over them every time Penny giggled and squeezed her plush closer to her.

Phil closed the final book and his heart squeezed at the look of sadness Penny had across her face when she realised that story time was over.  
“Bedtime now,” Dan announced as he planted a kiss on Penny’s cheek and then promptly blew a raspberry and Phil’s stomach swooped at the sound of her giggles.  
“Goodnight,” Phil whispered as he kissed Penny’s cheek himself.  
“Goodnight Papa,” Penny replied, “I love you.”  
Phil’s heart stuttered then. He’d be happy for this to be the last sight he’d ever see, the sight of his husband and child side by side in pyjamas, Penny with just brushed hair and face full of innocence and affection.  
“We love you too Bubba,” Dan whispered as he stroked Penny’s cheek with the back of his hand. They both stood up and waved to her as they turned on the light and left her alone in her room.

The rest of the night went by uneventfully, Dan and Phil just spent the night cleaning their apartment before they themselves retreated to bed chatting softly about soft nothings. Dan was in the middle of showing Phil a funny Instagram video he had saved when they heard the sound of something shuffling down the hall. They both moved their eyes to the door which swung open to Penny standing there, hair messy and Winnie the Pooh plush clutched in one hand.

“What are you doing up?” Dan asked sternly with his brow raised.  
“I had a nightmare,” Penny admitted softly and both Dan and Phil’s hearts melted at the sound of her timid voice.  
“Come here Bubba,” Dan said as he shifted over to make room for her.  
Penny toddled over to the bedside and Phil lifted her up onto their bed where she wriggled until she was underneath the sheets.

“What happened in your nightmare?” Phil asked gently as he pushed a stray curl out of Penny’s face.  
“There was a big monster and he was chasing me,” Penny whimpered as she curled into Phil’s side; Dan curled around her too pulling her into his chest until they were all cuddled up together.  
“He had big sharp teeth and he said that he was gonna eat me,” Peggy continued softly as she tightened her grip on her plushie, “it was really scary,” she sniffed and Phil’s heart ached at the sound.  
“Well we’ll scare the monster away won’t we?” Phil said as he nuzzled his nose into Penny’s curls.  
“Yeah we’ll protect you from any monster we promise,” Dan reassured, stroking Penny’s hand as he watched her eyelids droop.

“Why don’t you and Pooh sleep with us tonight?” Phil offered quietly. Penny didn’t give a reply only snuggled closer to Phil and squeezed her plush tighter to her body. Taking that as a yes Phil turned his bedside light off and waited for Dan to do the same. Once the room was dark the three of them curled around each other and waited to fall asleep.

 

~~~~

 

They could hear Penny happily watching cartoons in the lounge room when they both got the Facebook notification.  
“Don’t they know that literally no one uses Facebook anymore?” Dan complained as he fumbled to open the app.  
“Yeah I know, I check my emails more than Facebook,” Phil replied as he saw the announcement.

_Bring Your Child to Work Day_

_At the unanimous request of the Student Committee the Professor Event of the Year will be a bring your child to work day. Staff are requested to be accompanied by their child/children to the workplace however this is not compulsory. This event will be held the coming Monday. We hope to see everyone there!_

 

“Oh my god what are we going to do? Everyone’s going to find out!” Dan panicked as he began to list off everything that could go wrong.  
“Hey hey hey,” Phil soothed as he pressed a soft kiss to Dan’s lips, “it’s going to be okay.” He began to run his hands through Dan’s curls, “I’ve been thinking… that maybe… it wouldn’t be too bad if some people found out. We already had Grace find out last weekend and yeah we don’t need to shout it out to the world but maybe it wouldn’t be _terrible_ if we let some people figure it out. I’m getting a little bit of hiding it from work you know?”  
“Me too,” Dan mumbled into Phil’s shirt, snuggling closer to his husband.  
“So you’re okay with a couple people figuring us out?” Phil asked,  
“Yeah.”

They stayed like that together for a little while, arms around each other with Phil running his hands through his husband’s hair. The sound of Penny screaming with laughter pulled them out of their little bubble and they both let out a sigh.  
“I think we should let Penny pick,” Dan said as he reluctantly pulled himself out of Phil’s arms.    
Phil gave Dan’s curls a little ruffle before smiling, “okay.”

Penny was sitting at the dinner table that night happily digging into her mashed potatoes swinging her legs when Dan mentioned it.  
“You know Bubba… our work is having a bring your kid to work day… would you like to come?”  
“Yes!!” Penny squealed, knocking over her plastic cup in the process, “Oops…”  
Phil chuckled as he used a napkin to gently clean up the spill, “but who do you want to go with?”  
“Huh?” Penny creased her brow adorably and both her fathers grew soft at the sight.  
“Well your Papa and I work at the same place but we don’t see each other much,” Dan explained, “so you have to pick who you want to spend the day with.”  
“But I don’t wanna pick!” Penny crossed her arms and stuck out her bottom lip in the exact same way Dan did.  
“You don’t have to decide until Monday Pen Pen,” Phil smiled as he gave her another serving of carrots on her plate which she ate grumpily.

Penny was sitting on the kitchen bench swinging her legs while her dads were washing the dishes when she came up with the idea.  
“What if we have a compi- comp- competition?” She stuttered out.  
“Hmm?” Dan hummed as he turned to face his daughter.  
“You and Papa have a competition and I go with the winner!” Penny threw up her arms dramatically and smiled.  
“Oh?” Phil turned once he had stacked the last dish.  
“Yeah! We can play Mario Kart! And rock paper scissors!”  
Phil looked at his husband with his eyebrow raised and offered out his hand,  
“May the best dad win?”  
Dan took his husband’s hand enthusiastically,  
“You’re going down Lester.”

It started the next morning when Penny woke up her parents by jumping on their bed.

“The best breakfast maker wins Round One!!” She declared enthusiastically, wild curls bouncing around her face. Both her parents groaned with the abrupt way they were awakened but they dragged themselves out of bed to the kitchen. Phil _knew_ that Dan was going to try and make pancakes so he tried to hide the pancake mix in the pantry behind a cereal box but Dan caught him before he could pull the task off.

“Hey Penny!” He called out, his voice travelling from the kitchen into the lounge, “no cheating right?”  
"No! If you cheat you lose!”  
Dan pulled a smug face and reached behind Phil to grab the tub of pancake mix. It was too bad that Phil had already come up with a another plan to win this particular round. While Dan fiddled with pancake mix Phil poured a bowl of cereal and waited until Dan’s pancakes were on the pan. He let Dan make a couple of pancakes, let Dan tease about how his pancakes were _way_ better than just cereal. Once Dan had flipped the fourth pancake Phil pulled Dan away from the stove and kissed him.

He kissed him firmly, slipping his tongue into his husband’s mouth when Dan squeaked and clutched onto Dan’s shirt tightly, twisting the soft material between his fingers. They stood there for way too long, long enough for a pancake to burn and with Dan’s eyes closed Phil reached for the pan and flipped the burnt pancake onto a spare plate and slid it over next to his cereal bowl. He yanked himself away from Penny and called her name. Dan was still shocked speechless with the kiss and only began to protest when he saw the state of his lonely pancake.

“The pancake is burnt Daddy,” Penny wrinkled her nose as she prodded the dark pancake with her fork.  
“But-but-but!”  
“Papa wins!” Penny announced before eagerly digging into a bowl of cereal.  
Dan crinkled his brows and shot a pout at his husband.  
_I’m going to get you back_ he mouthed and Phil only grinned in response.

Once the entire breakfast ordeal was over Penny excitedly announced the next round.

“Rock Paper Scissors!”

Phil turned to his husband and raised his eyebrows in challenge, Dan responded by waggling his eyebrows and offered his fist.  
They chanted it together.

“Three two one go!”

Phil rock, Dan scissors. Phil wins.

“Three two one go!”

Phil paper, Dan paper. Draw.

“Three two one go!”

Phil scissors, Dan rock. Dan wins.

“Three two one go!”

Phil paper, Dan paper. Draw.

“Three two one go!”

Phil scissors, Dan scissors. Draw.

“Three two one go!”

Phil paper, Dan scissors. Dan wins.

“I win!” Dan yelled as Phil whined in defeat. Penny cheered and let Dan pick her up and swing her around with glee.

“Mario Kart now! Mario Kart now!” Penny shouted.

His loss fueled him to win even more so he laughed as they all crashed onto the couch ready for the game. Once characters were selected and the vehicles were constructed the game began. Curse free exclamations were shouted much to Penny’s delight and she giggled as Dan crossed the finish line first and he whooped in excitement.  He leapt off the couch and bounced up and down on the floor with glee; Penny joined in too mimicking her father’s joy. Dan picked her up and swung her around the room despite her giggling protests to put her down.

With a sigh Phil dropped his controller on the couch and stood up to meet his husband’s eyes. He little a small smidge of disappointment settle in his bones until an amazing idea came to him and it lit up his brain.

“All or nothing!”

Dan’s shoulders fell in disappointment,  
“No Phil!” Dan began to whine, “all or nothing is for when there’s a draw! Not when there’s already a winner!”  
“Yeah! All or nothing!” Penny cheered excitedly.  
Dan rolled his eyes and sighed, “what are we gonna do for the all or nothing Pen Pen?”  
“Whoever gives me the best dinner!” Penny shouted.

Phil knew he was going to lose. Dan was so much more competent in the kitchen then he was so he resigned himself to the loss by marking papers or at least pretending to do so. To cope with the harsh blow that was losing and was coping with it by neglecting his marking and scrolling through oddly satisfying Instagram videos instead. He saw one of those random cooking videos that made cooking look _way_ easier than it actually was when he was struck with an idea. He poked his head out of the office and yelled around the corner.

“How much longer til dinner?”  
“About twenty minutes!” Dan hollered back, “you’re going down old man!”  
Phil grinned to himself as he pulled out his phone and called their favourite pizza place.

Phil had just paid the pizza delivery guy when Dan called that dinner was ready. Penny was sat in her with an eager smile and cheered when Dan put down a pot of shepards pie in front of her but before she could dig into her food Phil smugly opened up the pizza box.

“Pizza anyone?”  
“Papa got pizza!” Penny screamed, immediately making reaching hands for the pizza, “Papa wins!”  
“But that’s- that’s that’s cheating!”  
“No it’s not,” Phil smiled, “she said whoever gives her the best dinner, I gave her pizza and she says it’s better than you so I win.”  
“Papa wins,” Penny nodded with a little pizza sauce and cheese on her chin.  
“Eat your pie loser we’re having pizza,” Phil teased as he took a slice laughing at the pout Dan wore as he stabbed his fork into his pie.

 

~~~~

 

Phil woke up to the feeling of Penny tapping his face.  
“Papa! Get up! I’m coming with you today!”  
Groaning Phil sat up rubbing his face and reached for his glasses, “let’s go get you dressed hey Pen Pen?”  
Penny nodded eagerly and happily scampered back into her room where she pointed to a dress that was hanging in her wardrobe.

  
“I wanna wear my buzzy bee dress Papa,” she insisted. Her ‘buzzy bee’ dress as she had so fondly named it was sky blue in colour with small bumblebees embroidered all over. Phil remembered that Dan had pointed it out to him in the store and the first thing he said once he saw the price tag was “No that’s way too much money!” but Dan pressed his case, assuring Phil that they’d buy a couple of sizes up so that Penny would grow into it, that they would only let her wear it on special occasions. Phil figured that Penny wouldn’t have many opportunities to spoil her dress on campus so he found himself pulling the dress from its hanger and pulling it over Penny’s head.

Once she was dressed she bounded back into the master bedroom and shaking to wake up Dan.  
“Do my hair pretty Daddy?”  
Dan smiled sleepily before agreeing and taking Penny into his arms. He had just began to gently brush out the knots in Penny’s curly hair when Phil leaned to press a kiss to his cheek.  
“I’m gonna take a shower okay?”  
“Okay.”

Under the warm mist of the shower head Phil tried to squash the small smattering of nerves in his stomach. Everything was going to be _fine_ if people found out then they found out, there was nothing to worry about. It’d had been so many years of hiding that the very idea of just being able to stand next to Dan on campus without worrying sounded like a dream. He dressed quickly and told Dan that he could take a shower while he fed Penny breakfast giving him a quick kiss before he took his daughter by the hand to give her some toast.

They left their apartment on time for once and were even lucky enough to manage to snag two seats on the train. They spent the trip together, legs tangled together with Penny sitting happily on Phil’s lap. They walked onto campus together and Phil felt himself getting a little emotional at the sight of his husband and hugging his daughter so tight that she giggled.

“Bye bye Daddy!” She waved as she wandered over to Phil’s side.  
“Bye bye Bubba,” Dan smiled before he stood up and began to walk in the direction of the Performing Arts building.  
“Ready to see where Papa works?” Phil asked as he squeezed Penny’s hand. Penny hummed a little “mmhmm” in reply and Phil chuckled as he lead her by the hand to the English building.

The morning went by a little more chaotically than Phil would’ve liked but it didn’t go terribly. His students fawned and cooed over Penny and Phil saw that she secretly revelled in the attention. They ran into Grace too and she was hasty to reintroduce herself to Penny who giggled at the funny giraffe pin on her backpack. Phil had just packed up his last lecture and led Penny into the office who had begun to go floppy with tiredness.

“Papa has to do some boring work to do but do you wanna maybe nap on the couch?” Phil offered as she failed to contain a yawn. She only hummed in response but Phil took it as a yes. The hour went by uneventfully with Phil just filtering through emails while Penny was snoozing on the couch. The clock hit 12:15 and he walked over to the couch to gently poke her awake.  
“Hey Pen Pen let’s get lunch yeah?”  
Penny sat up to stretch her arms and reached for her dad, silently asking to be picked up. He chuckled fondly as hitched her onto his hip. He grabbed both of their bags, making sure they had everything they needed before he left the office, locking the door behind him.

They were making their way to the grounds when Laurel approached them.

“Phil!” She cried, her tone obviously surprised, “I didn’t know you had a little one!”  
“Uhh.. yeah,” he answered awkwardly before adjusting Penny on his hip, “this is Penny.”  
“Hi Penny! It’s nice to meet you!”  
They all walked together with Laurel making conversation with Penny much to her delight.  
“I’m sorry for trying to set you up with Alison Phil,” Laurel apologised sincerely, “I had no idea that you were already uh… with someone…”  
“Um.. that’s okay,” Phil replied as a blush rose to his cheeks and his heart began to pound.  
“Who was lucky enough to tie you down anyway?” Laurel raised a brow but before Phil could answer Penny was wriggling  herself out of Phil’s grip.

“Daddy!”

Both Phil watched with horror and Laurel in fascination as Penny bounded across the grass towards Dan. The three of them were frozen in shock. Phil’s feet were frozen to the ground despite the warm sun, his heart stopped beating, it kinda felt like the world was falling apart at the seams. The couple of groups milling around the buildings felt like thousands as they tracked her curly haired flurry of energy. Phil could do nothing but stare as Penny raced towards his husband, taking with her the secrecy they had knitted over the years. She smiled back at him, “Come on Papa!” almost tripping over her feet as she failed to watch where she was going.  It was in that second that Phil’s brain had caught up with what had just happened he jogged over to Dan, with eyes as wide as saucers and mouth hanging open like a fly trap. Phil barely even registered Laurel following him as he finally slowed to a stop, a few steps away from Dan.

“Is this your dad Penny?” Laurel asked gently as Penny clutched to Dan’s leg.  
“Yes! I have two daddies!” Penny grinned cheekily before putting her arms up to be lifted. Still silent with shock Dan leaned down to pick her up where she immediately began to play with Dan’s curls.  
“So you two are married?” Laurel asked her tone laced with disbelief.

Dan and Phil shot each other matching looks of squeamishness before they both realised that they couldn’t lie to get out of this predicament. They explained everything, about Phil’s job, Dan’s job, how they started keeping everything a secret in the first place, how it became second nature even when they had Penny. Their introduction was disrupted by Penny announcing that she was hungry delivering her message with the pout that so closely resembled Dan’s.  
“Okay we’ll let the little munchkin get some food her her tummy,” Laurel laughed, “but we’ll be talking about this later.” She walked off with a wave leaving Dan, Phil and Penny alone.

“What are we going to do?” Dan asked as they began to make the trip to Starbucks.  
“We did say that it would be okay if everyone found out about Penny,” Phil sighed as they turned a corner. “Maybe it won’t be so bad.”  
Dan laughed at that before he leaned closer to whisper into Phil’s ear, “maybe you can fuck me backstage like I’ve always wanted.”  
“Dan!” Phil gasped affronted and only huffed when Dan burst into laughter as Starbucks came into sight.  
“But you really think everything’s going to be okay?” Dan asked with wide eyes and it only took one look into the pool of milk chocolate and copper to know that Dan was being serious, that he was scared, frightened of what people would think, worried about what people might say, was scared of being vulnerable in this new way.

They walked into the Starbucks and Penny squealed in excitement as she skittered over to the food cabinet. She pointed at a slice of carrot cake and loudly asked if she could have it for lunch. It only took Phil one look at her excited smiling face and the fond look on Dan’s to make up his mind.

 

“Yeah I think we’ll be okay.”  


**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! leave comments and kudos if you like!! i really hope you enjoyed it but i'm just gonna shamelessly plug our socials now.  
> you can find olivia's twitter account [here](https://mobile.twitter.com/crzyfast)  
> you can also find me on [twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/aImondbIossoms) and [tumblr](https://persephonespeonies.tumblr.com)  
> this fic was also beta'd by my lovely bestie tj and you can find her one [twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/frecklyIance), [tumblr ](https://nerdydisneychild.tumblr.com/) and [ao3](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tjmcharg/pseuds/tjmcharg) this fic would not be half as good without her i owe her my very soul to be honest


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